Freddie had been on his way to the great hall when a poster in the courtyard had stopped him in his tracks. Student Defence Association. Something something something, duelling. Huh. A duelling tournament? The date on the poster had long passed - someone had obviously forgotten to take it down - but as far as he could gather, it was an annual event. Susie had never mentioned it. Sounded fun, anyway; if they did another one, he would have to go and watch.
He turned to carry on, but something else made him pause. His ears were sensitive to any mention of his sister; and it was his sister, Freddie realised, with a flicker of something savage, that the boy was describing. She'd sat on her own because she'd had a headache. Admittedly, he'd given her some grief about the flowery-blazer-and-tie combo himself, but he was allowed to tease her. He was her brother. And because he was her brother, she'd rolled her eyes and brushed it off. What would happen if she overheard some random kid talking about her like that? She'd pretend it didn't bother her, but it would, deep down. The blazer would come off. She'd put it in the back of her dresser, claim she'd grown out of it, couldn't find it, didn't like it any more. No. So what if it looked stupid? It made her happy. And if anyone in this world deserved to be happy, it was Susie.
Before Freddie knew what he was doing, he was standing in front of the Gryffindor. "Are you talking about my sister?" he asked. His tone was almost polite, but there was venom in his eyes, sharp and focused. "Are you talking about Susie?"